Can ya believe it? We got the grant and our project is in full swing now! Here’s a blog to kick us off from the Project’s Facilitator.
Ay Up, I’m Jodes, from Blackwell (ex-mining village)”.
As soon as I introduce myself saying that I firstly think of my Auntie who’s lived in Blackwell parish pretty much all of her life, and who introduces herself every time with;
“I’m Pauline, Derbyshire born and Derbyshire bred, strong in the arm but weak in the head”.
And secondly I think of how I have always introduced myself;
“Hi, I’m Jodes, I’m from Blackwell, an ex-mining village in Derbyshire”.
Never just Blackwell.
It wasn’t until I was studying for my Post Grad when training to become a teacher and we did a round of introductions with our new peers when a Lecturer picked me up on my description of it.
Strange thinking about it now really, I’d got into my twenties and never realised I had automatically always said it and I’m not really sure who had taught me it.
I believe the Lecturer’s specialism was around social constructs and demographics with a keen interest in equality and inclusion and he had come to teach us about teaching with those things in mind, and obviously my introduction lit him up with many questions!
This quickly became the whole session where us trainee teachers discussed, debated and unpicked class, social mobility and social cultural context. Most of my peers were mature students, returning to University for teaching papers and they all had a lot to say about it. 18 years on, I think I’d now be ready to actually fully participate in that discussion.
Someone’s culture and history is such a complex thing. It has taken me a long time but I am now very excited and honoured to be working alongside my community to learn, celebrate, share and preserve it, what matters to us and to do it on our terms too! It has felt very liberating (and also heavy as it is quite a responsibility), to be able to bring working class ex-industrial communities into the fold to spotlight the heritage here.
So… a little more about me…
I was raised on a council estate in Blackwell (ex-mining village ,) .. it’s actually just a street over from where I reside today and I have felt a great privilege being raised and living here now, mainly because of the community.
The landscape around me has always been very important to me too.
As a kid I spent hours down the lane, near where the old pit and engine sheds were, either dressed in my mam’s net curtains replaying ‘Labyrinth’ film scenes to myself or with mates playing ‘man hunt’ in ‘the forest’ (an area with a few trees), catching newts and taddys down the ponds, paddling in the black brook (old brook where the colliery water was drained) or just playing on our bikes down the table tops (near the railway).
I have always felt a very strong connection to where I live physically and relationally. I believe the history of ‘here’ passed down through stories shared at skittles nights or in front of coal fires when we had electric cuts (or I was in houses that hadn’t got top up cards for the lekkie) really resonated with me. Although the stories were of tough and gritty themes, they always had a sense of romance because they were built from the people here, and most of them are the salt of the earth folk. When I was a kid and the physical traces in the actual land of what now is gone has always intrigued me greatly too. I have seen first hand the talent, will and nature of the people who live here, it is in abundance. I am very excited to work as an along-sider on this project to see what we can find, produce and then preserve together.
My background is in arts and culture, teaching and learning and I have a lot of experience overseeing participatory arts projects and alternative education provision. My practice today is concerned with cultural democracy and is propelled by the want to change the balance of power and agency, with and for communities. Equity and opportunity is important to me, as is making change with and for people that is fun and creative. I am a huge fan of working co-creatively and wherever possible I like to work with a ‘community first’ approach.
I believe in people and place and I think playfulness and imagination is underestimated often, but I know it can garner so much for all involved so am hoping to spread this within the delivery approach.
My primary role on Home Truths is to facilitate the heritage project and I intend to disarm the Project Manager in me wherever possible, and will work very closely with the Greater Creative collective, the wider community and professionals and creatives too.
You’ll hear my procrastinations and reflections as we go forth on here … but most importantly you’ll hear about the projects adventures and of course you’ll hear from the cracking and dedicated Greater Creative working party, a bunch of local residents from the parish who will be sharing their findings, thoughts and musings on this blog too!
Here’s my email should you want to reach out and get in touch: Jodes@PlatformThirty1.